1 thing I overlooked was Business Liability Insurance, which I was requested to provide proof of today when submitting a bid, anyone find some cheap insurance anywhere here on the internet? *I got 1 quote today from a local broker and they want $500/year for insurance for 1 million $ coverage, was wondering if there's cheaper out there? I've also seen Commercial Auto Insurance, would this be the same type of coverage I need that would also cover me at each of my properties? I'm really unfamiliar with this.

Thanks,

ANDY

pmblair

11-30-2007, 02:14 AM

$500/year for a $1 million policy? Dude, that's an awesome rate! Do you realize that is less than $42 a month! I'd jump on it!

pnplawn

11-30-2007, 02:17 AM

Yea what they guy said up there &^^^^^^^^

ABurlison

11-30-2007, 02:37 AM

Yeah, I guess your right, that's not bad, I just had in my head what my Uncle told me, he quit his business 3 years ago and he said he only paid $200/year, so I thought $500 was bad, but I guess its not.

grounded

11-30-2007, 03:29 AM

Im paying $800.00 for 1/2 mil per year - whats the name of your agent?

I have hartford now

Thanks

Tom

ABurlison

11-30-2007, 03:34 AM

Its a local Farmer's Insurance Agent.

Steve

11-30-2007, 07:27 PM

Hi Andy,

Let us know which one you decide to go with.

ABurlison

11-30-2007, 08:23 PM

I ended up going with Farmer's Insurance, they did my 99 Suburban and the commercial liability insurance for $130/Month. Figured I'd stay local and actually talk to someone in person.

Steve

11-30-2007, 11:04 PM

Would you recommend this to other lawn care operators?

Gilligan

12-08-2007, 08:12 AM

One thing to keep in mind when your purchasing insurance, is the actual coverage and limits, not just the price.

You would be amazed at how many policies I have seen where companies paid a fair sum of money for slim to no coverage, and had they spent a little extra money or changed carriers the coverage difference was huge.

Before I got into the Green industry I was a certified insurance counselor for 16 years and specialized in commercial contractors.

If you have any questions let me know...

Steve

12-08-2007, 08:24 AM

Hi Gilligan,

Welcome to our forum!

What advice do you have as far as the type of insurance coverage a lawn care operator should purchase?

Gilligan

12-08-2007, 08:39 AM

Well good morning, That was a quick response.

You asked a GREAT question, How detailed an answer are you looking for? I could literally type out a book about all the different types of coverages (Ex: General Liability, Commercial Auto vs Personal Auto gaps, Workers Comp, Excess Liability vs an Umbrella, Inland Marine coverage...etc...etc...)

and we havent even begun to discuss limits..additional exposures..various types of policies..Such as a stand alone GL or package policy vs a BOP type policy...

and then of course theres the topic of difference between insurance carriers..

I'd probably take away from your band width if I typed it all..

lol

pmblair

12-08-2007, 01:16 PM

What would you recommend for an LCO? Your personal recommendation... and how much coverage?

I think the biggest thing being a business owner is that I want the most coverage for the least amount of money spent... I mean, I know I can't get maximum coverage for pennies on the dollar, but I want to make sure I can stay covered without spending all my profits on insurance.

Gilligan

12-08-2007, 03:05 PM

Quote[/b] (pmblair @ Dec. 08 2007,1:16)]What would you recommend for an LCO? *Your personal recommendation... and how much coverage? *

I think the biggest thing being a business owner is that I want the most coverage for the least amount of money spent... I mean, I know I can't get maximum coverage for pennies on the dollar, but I want to make sure I can stay covered without spending all my profits on insurance.
Thats exactly right,...theres no sense in going to the poor farm by paying premiums you can't afford.

Best way for me to give you advice is tell me a little about your specific operation. Are you a sole owner operater, other than you how many people employed by you or sub contractors working for you that dont have their own coverage.

Business entity type..C, sole proprietor, etc.
approx annual revenue..you can pm this to me if you want so its not out in the forum...
Do you want to cover your equipment?
Vehicles...personally or commerciall owned..

Lets start with this info..and I can steer you along better...

Gilligan

12-08-2007, 03:08 PM

Other than the normal lawn work, do you perform any other duties....Snow plowing (didnt take a look at your location)
Blowing off roof tops, Tree trimming, pressure washing...etc...

If you can give us any examples I am sure many of our readers would appreciate it.

Gilligan

12-09-2007, 06:58 PM

Quote[/b] (Team Gopher @ Dec. 08 2007,6:45)]Hi Gilligan,

If you can give us any examples I am sure many of our readers would appreciate it.
I'll try and put something together...maybe some tips of what information to provide and questions to ask in order to get the best price. *

Even though its the slow season here, I'm spending alot of time with getting my marketing stradegy set up for next season and attempting to learn html so I can improve my website presense. (never enough time in the day)

Let me ask you a question and perhaps you can save me a little time. *I'm going to be giving away a years free lawn care this year to some derserving property owner. *You know..either someone that gives there time and effort to the community or someone that has suffered a Catastrophic loss of some type. (perhaps a military family..or to an educator in our area who helps teach our youth,,I dont think teachers get paid enough for what they sometimes do)

One...its just a nice thing to do, and a way to say thanks..but I also figure it will go a little ways toward name recognition.

Do you know anyone who has done something like this..I'm trying to put a list together of markingting ideas. *Other than the community newspapapers and a mailing to my customers, I'm looking for other free avenues to use to get the word out.

Get the most bang for the buck on this give away.

Steve

12-09-2007, 07:12 PM

Hi Gilligan,

We actually talk about this quite a bit. You might want to consider doing yard cleanups for different people in your community throughout the year to help spread out the p.r.

You could go with one person but helping many with smaller jobs may have more bang for the buck for you.

How do you find people to help? Ask around town. Look around your neighborhood. Find those who need help. Maybe even talk with town officials.

Then I would take pictures of everything you did and make a story about each one to put on your website and also send to the paper as a press release.

What are your thoughts on this?

Gilligan

12-09-2007, 08:52 PM

Quote[/b] (Team Gopher @ Dec. 09 2007,7:12)]Hi Gilligan,

We actually talk about this quite a bit. You might want to consider doing yard cleanups for different people in your community throughout the year to help spread out the p.r.

You could go with one person but helping many with smaller jobs may have more bang for the buck for you.

How do you find people to help? Ask around town. Look around your neighborhood. Find those who need help. Maybe even talk with town officials.

Then I would take pictures of everything you did and make a story about each one to put on your website and also send to the paper as a press release.

What are your thoughts on this?
that sounds much better..

helping out more individuals and repeated exposure...

thanks

Little's

12-09-2007, 10:15 PM

I found that most lawn care operators arent covered for doing tree work. There coverage only goes as far as what is considered "incidental" which is a shrub or small tree needs to be trimmed in a yard that is being maintained. And also the coverage is only valid if the trimming is being done from the ground. Half of my business right now is removing trees and dangerous limbs/ branches. My insurance would no0t cover this so I had to shop for better coverage, and found that the price jumps up considerably. Most wanted 1500 to 2000 per year. I contacted about 20 insurance companies and only got called back by 10. I lucked out and found a local agent who covered me for this (and lawn care coverage) for $700 per year for 1 million.
I would recommend everyone check their coverage for tree trimming if they are doing any. Hope this helps.

Steve

12-09-2007, 10:57 PM

Brandon,

This is all for liability right?

Little's

12-10-2007, 10:30 PM

Yes for liability. I would check to see if you are covered for cutting trees, if you do any of that kind of work.